The Search For Detroit’s Absent Students

VICE News heads to Detroit, MI, where thousands of students have been missing since the beginning of the school year, to see why these rates are so high and hear how the pandemic has created barriers to learning.Subscribe to VICE News here: bit.ly/Subscrib...
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[@5xl100]

"His learning will always be more important than mine" Thats a real mother

[@LOST-BANDIDO]

thats a fact

[@legojesus6931]

Clyde Cash Is that you?

[@MisterXenomorph]

It you!!! Clyde Cash!!!

[@5xl100]

@@MisterXenomorph *villainous laugh*

[@chiefs816kc]

A real mother would not have had 3 kids with no father present. A real mother would have gotten her education prior to having 3 bastard kids.

[@sharr630]

The worst part is that a poor school experience early on tends to turn kids off from education altogether.

[@KingHarambe_RIP]

@Ja Ekh But without education, how will our children figure out how to acquire the tin foil necessary to create hats to prevent government satellites from reading into their thoughts? You gonna personally make them all yourself?

[@nuclearnadal3116]

@@KingHarambe_RIP don't worry dude this guy is either a troll or lunatic either way the best thing to do is not to give him the attention they want

[@thatlittleratinyourcloset7612]

@Ja Ekh lmao who cares about vietnamese kids

[@thatlittleratinyourcloset7612]

@Ja Ekh same

[@thatlittleratinyourcloset7612]

@Ja Ekh lol no. are you?

[@matthewjay660]

I am a teacher in Houston. We have been in-face AND at-home learning since early October 2020. I’m in the classroom. It’s now early April and even my more serious at-home students are starting to have attendance issues. I’m having to call home and beg 🙏🏻 them to submit work, yet all principals are breathing down our necks regarding our failure rates. This is my 11th and last year of teaching.

[@NellyNel2023]

Man thats tuff. I give you all the credit as a teacher and someone trying to do your job for the kids.

[@Bailey2006a]

Your last sentence is the real frightening thing about this issue. Teachers are leaving the profession in droves. Who will replace them?

[@Tman56]

I left the traditional school system in November (nyc). I feel you man, we are not the ones at fault and neither are our children.

[@Emma.S.]

Much respect for you for teaching in America... sad to hear you are leaving but entirely understandable!

[@Godbless-bk1im]

@Matthew Jay thank you for your contribution.

[@goofytuna6077]

Online school sucks ass man. Everyday it's just wake up, submit by 11:59pm, then go to sleep. I feel like my youth is just passing by me and I can't do anything about it

[@oxnyxws]

Talk to everyone around you about getting vaccine so we can get out of this!

[@nehakhanom2293]

Same. A big part of school for me was spending time with my friends and socialising in a comfortable environment in ways anxiety won’t let me otherwise, and learning with my classmates motivated me. Online school kicked my ass.

[@Kalani_Saiko]

@Cal Rogers We're children, let us be kids and we will deal with work later, the point is we are not adults, we are still learning about what the world is like, let us do that before you shove adulthood into our faces

[@sebby324]

My school days are 6AM to 6PM to online school have me more free time

[@nehakhanom2293]

@Cal Rogers wow! i never thought I’d see it for myself... a boomer in the wild! you really read a comment about a student struggling and thought ‘how dare they talk about school work!! Let me take time out of my day to insult them!!! that’ll teach them to talk about their interesting experiences! KIDS THESE DAYS!’

[@aleksandra4581]

I was shocked that missing 2 days per month is considered chronic absence, in my last year of high school I only attended 40% of classes and noone reached out to me about it

[@davidporter9553]

I think that's more for Elementary and Middle school students. As a Senior in High School, things are different

[@lurkintracks]

Same i missed 170+ days and my school doesn't even say nothing

[@What-sf5ey]

sounds like a failed system wherever you live

[@benji6632]

If you’re over 17 the attendance rules are different. Also if you have good grades like mostly Bs schools honestly don’t care. I’m a sophomore and miss a day almost every week but I’m a straight A student in all honor classes. I’ve only been talked to about it once a couple weeks ago despite being well over the allowed limit of missed days for months.

[@bobabola1386]

I miss like 40% of school an get only 50s 😌

[@thealanford4780]

I work at a Montessori school. We do home visits for each child. They are vital and so helpful to understand each child’s situation.

[@thealanford4780]

@Adam Lee I teach in CO and we only closed after Covid hit. We were able to have summer camp and kids came back for school this year. With procedures in place of course. We have had children get covid and had to quarantine. But very grateful to be able to be in the classroom with my students.

[@rasheeda1303]

Send out survey letters as well.

[@monkemode8128]

@Adam Lee Yea, at my school so far 270 kids have been forced to quarantine due to at least 15 minutes of being within 6 feet of someone with COVID-19 (including me). With the schools own numbers that my stats teacher showed us the chance of getting COVID given you were quarantined from exposure was most likely was only a few percentage points higher than those who weren't. It really spikes whenever we have holidays though. I think going back to school is largely fine with basic safety precautions, wear a mask and social distance where possible, because even if it rarely affects students there's still teachers, faculty, and parents to worry about. I like our system where students/parents can choose online or in person, if someone's scared they don't need to go.

[@thealanford4780]

@@RandomKZbin123 we do not inspect it . We do it to meet the child in their environment. Chill out

[@lfugh1]

@Adam Lee kids come into contact with parents, other kids, teachers... very uneducated comment

[@briann1151]

I’m pretty sure almost every kid has lost somewhat some motivation in school during corona.

[@majermike]

it's easy for kids to lose motivation. a few bad early experiences and they could shut down to learning altogether.

[@pHixiq]

I’m in college, had a 3.5 gpa. Online has moved rhat down to a. 2.7. Had to drop out until I could go back to campus. It’s terrible

[@briann1151]

@@pHixiq sorry to hear,I was demotivated a ton with online school,I’ve never failed a class in my life until this year. Best choice is to do everything in person to get you right I guess.

[@pHixiq]

@@briann1151 100% same here. Had to drop so many classes I just figured it was best to hold out till maybe later this year. Many people have no idea how bad it’s affecting not only K-12, But college as well. Like they think they know, but don’t truly know.😣

[@briann1151]

@@pHixiq facts,2020 was one of the biggest mental challenges for me.

[@chaseboen2448]

This is a snow ball thats rolling down and only getting bigger. We all need to recognize this as a serious issue and not just someone else’s problem.

[@biggboi1025]

Our school system needs serious revision tbh.

[@jakethadley]

This worst thing I see is that a country has this problem, but doesn't think "If we solve this, we will lead the world in industry and science". Healthy, educated, productive citizens leads to a strong nation!

[@jonathansantiago792]

@@jakethadley The USA's edge is its people; specifically an educated populace. If we don't fix these issues (a lot of which we're already suffering the consequences), I fear that the nation is only going to see worsening inequality. We'll end up with the few who were educated and able to get a high-tech job, and then everyone else, who were left behind or otherwise living in the scraps, as more and more jobs get automated. Ultimately, a middle class will be almost nonexistent, or left to the high-middle class, and then the ever-present small, but significant, class of multi-billionaires will of course remain and have more influence than ever. In the end of the day, when their only competition is just a small educated work force, and then a huge, but insignificant (in terms of influence) poorer population, then it just doesn't end well. In the end, after a certain point where enough people have nothing left to lose, and are angry at the system, you end up seeing the riots and something that makes the Capitol Riots look like a joke in comparison. Not to say to give up fixing things, as the future isn't written yet, but it's safe to say doing nothing/the current trend of things don't lead to many favorable outcomes.

[@ryanstorm7050]

This makes me so badly want to figure out if I can at least help locally We have a University where I am that sends its outdated equipment, such as computers I see a need for computers among lower class people, maybe I can help fill that need?

[@tedhan1920]

Looks like this person didn't get much of school time.

[@joyfulinternecion]

"You are brilliant. I know you know your handsome." I'm crying. The way he lit up. My heart.

[@flimcomedy7667]

Complements can only go so far but reality is reality. These kids are already in a messed up situation. Lets be blunt with them instead of giving empty hopes. And parents are also to blame.

[@joyfulinternecion]

How do I delete someone else's comment? Get outta here with this racist predetermination bs.

[@soapy7619]

@@flimcomedy7667 dude, whats wrong with giving a kid a damn compliment? jesus christ...

[@asialadd7584]

I grew up homeless, if I had to do online school I would have had to drop out so ik this is hard on some families

[@asialadd7584]

@T Scott Lol shhh go sit down

[@johnsnow5955]

@@asialadd7584 You mean if you aren't given access to information you won't learn? How shocking! Just imagine if the internet was a human right like food and water.

[@bxnnys]

@T Scot yes that’s true but why u making it seem like it’s their fault?

[@user-us1yu8gx9s]

Fortunately some schools were given grants to provide tech and wifi to students who don't have them.

[@Trekki200]

@@user-us1yu8gx9s unfortunately many schools didn't get enough or the way the grands are set up is inefficient. Like sometimes a family is considered to be 'covered' if they have any kind of device that can run online learning, even if that is one phone in a household with several kids in school...

[@mattrick2319]

i’m in my senior year of high school at a very good school and I didn’t realize how poor the education system was until this whole corona thing. I’ve been watching fellow classmates and myself included lose motivation in their education this last year.

[@TheRealJ4sp]

Get online and have your voice heard. I believe in you and your generation! YOU HAVE RESOURCES. AND YOU ARE CREATORS.

[@beandispenser6971]

@Adam Lee I didn't come here to solve a word puzzle

[@joaquinb700]

@Adam Lee you act like they would’ve known that immediately when the pandemic started

[@agni_oh]

@Adam Lee lay off the drugs Adam

[@vonm1761]

@Adam Lee Saddest part is you’re completely right and people just don’t get it.

[@SquizzMe]

I teach high school in Chicago, and two days absent per month is a luxury. Many of our students miss a lesson a week, often more. The parents are almost always the source.

[@EazyMurphy]

@Kris Kripotos bro do you even know what your talking about? And kids in single parent homes have lower grades compared to those with both parents.

[@ektamalhi3480]

I teach high school students in India and attendence problem is the same here... Out of a class section of more than 35 students , barely 18-20 show up... There's a issue of device availability ... When that boy said , ' We are not learning anything... we just go on with the next class ".. it's so difficult these days for both teachers and students..

[@iamj9127]

I’ve been teaching 8th grade math using the hybrid model since September 2020. I also have students that are completely virtual. I have not seen the superintendent or any other high level administration or board member in my school all year. They make decisions about what we should do as teachers but never even come out into the field to see first hand what we need to do to manage from day to day. I’m pretty sure that they are not stuck behind a mask every day.

[@gregthompson3481]

That’s why I like working at a private school. Admin is way more sensible. I mainly teach high school but I had a 7th grade class last year that I didn’t wanna teach anymore. The director of my class now teaches during 4th period so that I could have all high schoolers this year. She also is able to get a first-hand experience of what it’s like trying to motivate these kids online.

[@Danxethenightaway]

Agreed!!! Many teachers are quitting due to this very fact

[@TreinspotterSem]

Me hearing 2 days absent every month: Those are rookie numbers this video gave me more motivation than my therapist and school combined lol

[@michelleg5679]

I live about 30 minutes away from Detroit and I have a family member that teaches in Detroit Public Schools. She said she’s not even surprised when only 2 people show up for class :(

[@BlackFlamma]

Yeah because they lose money when a kid doesn’t go that’s why

[@kovy689]

Yup

[@captaincane64]

Duh but don’t blame the people in the video. Look at the system they are working in.

[@Danxethenightaway]

Really ?! Wow 😳 never knew that

[@joshuanuss1356]

Yeah, a system that supports wealthier areas more than lower income areas. Just one of the many facets of systemic racism in public education in the US. Sure the district gets paid per student, but don't think it's some corrupt system where they don't actually care about the kids.

[@maroonhorizon1693]

Oh wow

[@sir1junior]

I remember when I was in Nolan Middleschool and kids would get suspended for more than 2 weeks.

[@unicorn-glasses]

My middle school (in Tennessee) had a similar policy when I was there. And it never made sense to me. Why would the solution to a child missing a lot of school be forcing the child to miss MORE school?

[@MilnaAlen]

Wow, that's crazy. In Finland we never get suspensions. If you have missed out a lot you may need to make up for it at the end of school year so your summer holiday starts later, or if it's bad enough you have to repeat the year.

[@MilnaAlen]

Only if you were a danger to others or really disruptive you might get suspended from school, but even then your teacher would help you learn at home until they found a placement for you. Also my city has 2 special classes for students with bad school anxiety. It starts with getting the student in school for one hour a week, and slowly increasing. They also have 10 students at most, and there's a mental health expert just for that class, present every day.

[@matijakavcic2662]

thank god i live in europe

[@anyah7747]

My little brother used to go there

[@emmaq3250]

This last year has been truly horrible for so many people. Schools should have had an options to stay open this whole time. I can’t imagine trying to juggle finding childcare on top of everything else that happened last year.

[@exoboosterdemo]

18 days ?? Boy I literally missed like 6months of school and no reaction from my school smh 🤣🤣

[@objectoriented3049]

Nothing to be proud of.

[@What-sf5ey]

Sounds like a pretty shitty system you got going over there if they don't care about students.

[@rgg.x1]

I missed like 35 days now

[@Christian-bb6mm]

That isn’t something to be proud of.

[@2hunnid689]

ive missed 38 days

[@spicyroads]

Start teaching kids how to succeed in life. Teach skills that will help them reach their goals. Teach them about money, credit, interest and investing. Teach critical thinking how to discern truth from rumor . 90% of everything I did in school was useless

[@dannydaw59]

That makes too much sense!

[@bmorg5190]

And quit walking out of the house every day Thinking the white man has done something to bring you down because that’s just hilarious

[@chiefs816kc]

Start teaching kids that two parent homes are important. This single parent epidemic is killing America.

[@katieakin9397]

@@bmorg5190 do you know even an ounce of US history or...? Redlining just a word to you??

[@thetree9399]

The issue with being a "poor kid" is that your parents are almost never there. Always working (especially if divorced) and you have nothing but yourself and probably shady friends in a similar situation who have no one to teach them anything valuable. This is part of the cycle of poverty.

[@SweetasSugar42]

I was chronically absent from school a lot as a kid due to illness. Those were days with no education at all. It is incredibly difficult to make up for that time lost, even with all the supports I had from family and the healthcare system. I don't how these teachers and students manage to make up for lost time.

[@scarlrtt13]

You know the schooling system is bad when you can miss less than 18 days and lose so much track. I'm pretty sure classmates and myself have missed more days of school in highschool and we lost nothing education wise, I live in the Caribbean.

[@MK_ULTRA420]

I'm pretty sure standards are lower in the Caribbean if you can miss more than 18 days and still be on track.

[@scarlrtt13]

@@MK_ULTRA420 how would they be lower, we are taught how to study at home at an early age by our teachers, our teachers keep in contact with us and our parents over email, the phone or WhatsApp telling us what we did in class, we get our syllabus from the start of the year so we can keep on track, we are also encouraged to create class groups over whats app for study and sharing of information and our textbooks actually have the detailed information we would be learning in them. education is viewed as a privilege here (yes, it's a right here like most western nations but we are taught by our parents that it is more of a privilege).

[@scarlrtt13]

@@MK_ULTRA420 what students in America learn in grade 8 and 9 we learn in grade 6 or 7 (depending on if you go to private or public school, private grade 6, public grade 7) we also have stricter curriculums and school system. and we don't have middle-schools its just straight high school and we can start university/college at 15-17 years old granted we pass at least 5 subjects with B profiles for each subject. and our universities tuition cost is between 1500 - 4000 USD per year (depending on the subject and this is just the tuition not adding the cost of living).

[@yungchum2073]

Now this is quality content Vice. Good job, more like this.

[@dskye2634]

I live in the UK. Even if i took my kids out of school for a holiday during term time, you can be fined or go to jail.

[@ronaldcox6877]

Really? In a past relationships of mine my girlfriend at the time would be pull out at weeks or more for random reasons by her mother and they never did a thing or said a thing besides blame her

[@mercyappiah3272]

Wow Ik kids who may come every other month or just come in the beginning of the school year and at the end and I live in NYC America in general has an education crisis and they don’t wanna have that conversation

[@dskye2634]

@@ronaldcox6877 I think a lot has changed since school league tables became so competitive. I have twin 6 year olds and when they first started school I took them out for 2 hours to go to a dental appointment. When I came to collect them from school that day I was told that the school doesn't appreciate the loss time and next time I should take them on the weekends or during the school holiday breaks. I was embarrassed more than offended... I felt like I was told off! I guess they cared. Kids get certificates for 100% attendance and nobody wants the safeguarding welfare lady calling you or visiting your house to see if there are 'any problems at home'.

[@RandomYouTubeGuy-El-Hechizado]

same here, the kids can't be out of school for a certain period of time unless you want the police near

[@chaosXP3RT]

It's technically illegal in the USA too. My parents told me they could go to prison if I didn't attend school. I never missed a day (unless I was sick), but I was late a number of times. Got detention for it. Whoops

[@L00KOUT]

Two days a month??? Bro that’s light. Like that’s no big deal. Let a kid breathe

[@madelinesummers5471]

If they want to miss school then give them the resources to get a ged or even enroll in a school that allows them to just turn in online work. There are so many reasons kids don't stay in school and forcing their parents to pay money or sending them to jail isn't going to help their lives get any better.

[@gregthompson3481]

I’m a teacher in Texas but I went to school and used to teach in PA. At my high school and at some of the ones I worked at there was basically a loophole where as long as you were present in the morning for homeroom, you were marked “present” for the day even if you left in the middle of the day. I would usually leave just before or after lunch since I already had been marked present for the day. I remember my first year teaching the school I worked at realized kids were doing this and they cracked down on us about making sure we do attendance for every class.

[@potatoesare_jesus2278]

Once I’ve gotten a truancy officer sent to my house in 6th grade because I was absent for three days And didn’t have a doctors note turned in, Little did they know I was suffering a mild lung infection and couldn’t be seen by the doctor until the day after. I gave them the doctors note but they still hold the truancy against me

[@lifesucksgetoverit5440]

Love ur name and pic

[@md1264]

Your mom could have called the school to let them know...?

[@urmom_69]

@@md1264 medical leave doesnt count if you dont have a doctors note

[@md1264]

@@urmom_69 I'm an assistant principal. All the parent has to do is call the school and tell them what happened and we mark it as excused. The OP makes it sound like they did not communicate anything with the school until they got a doctor's note days after the beginning of the sickness.

[@RunningGladeXStray]

I respect these teachers and that reverend they really care. And to all those kids I hope they keep pushing forward

[@otiscrosbie7859]

cant have a kid in detroit....

[@sonnytopboy4975]

Its all over the world, it's a war on the poor to go with the drugs war on the poor, my 3 kids all had to have a laptop for school...it's a piss take.

[@ariannaharp5021]

Sad. But it’s everywhere. I take my kids to suburban schools and live in Detroit.

[@anoncrazynonevilgooddecent7631]

@@ariannaharp5021 what suburbs?

[@ariannaharp5021]

@@anoncrazynonevilgooddecent7631 Dearborn

[@tvommy]

Detroit teen here, well in the outskirts, I got charged with truancy, and so far, I’ve had to restart my senior year when I could’ve graduated with my actual graduating class and it made me so depressed, and I’m struggling with being okay with college.

[@XSemperIdem5]

During the pandemic there were low income students sitting outside McDonald's and other such places that had free WiFi just so they could log into their classes. I wish more people in a position of power realized that internet has become necessary. And if you have multiple children trying to attend classes Zoom style with video and audio, you're going to need decent internet and devices that can keep up. So many problems that were there all along came to light during the pandemic.

[@mikar502]

I don’t know about you guys but as a student myself I find it hard to stay awake for a class and that’s how I miss most of them

[@deebo5475]

We definitely need these home visits to check on absentee students so we don't have another child killed and stuffed into a freezer with no one even wondering why they left school🙏🏾❤️

[@joaquinb700]

I’m a freshman but I personally think instead of summer school or extra school hours because of covid learning loss we should redo the current school year so we can not only catch up academically but also regroup from the aftermaths of covid whether that be mental health or family losses.....I also think that it would benefit all not only in the future but also next year so that kids wouldn’t have to worry about a certain math skill they didn’t learn last year like radius or area or perimeter when they might be needing that certain math skill for a future assignment or unit.... sorry if it didn’t make sense

[@emptybottleof151]

So everyone gets held back a year?

[@joaquinb700]

@@emptybottleof151 I guess but college students move on

[@dannnnydannnn5201]

Don’t apologize. I’m not saying that that’s definitely the solution, but it’s a reasonable idea for sure. No matter what happens, most of the worlds students have lost a year. You’re not alone in this.

[@MrOwen000]

“What is missing in some of these households that make it hard for some of these kids to show up” Fathers.

[@susanrobinson3745]

This is so sad and happening all over this Country

[@majermike]

just one item in a long list of things they took away from us last year

[@SEXYDCGIRL84]

My mom worked 8 to 12 hours a day during the school week. When she left out for work at 5am so did we for school. Education was a priority in our house. My mom attended pta meetings and made surprise visits to sit in our classes. Parents have to care enough to be involved in their children's academic lives because it's obvious that the school system doesn't. Online learning can be very difficult even in college. In person learning was better for me because I'm a visual learner. Too much idle time for these kids is also leading to spikes in teenage crime rates. The trickle down effect always harm black students the most due to us being essential workers and being in poverty.

[@amandabrank4652]

When your a single parent an then car breaks down you gotta do what you gotta do but that doesnt mean we dont 💖 our kids or care about education.i have multiple kids all ages an then school shut down I cant afford daycare or have anyone to watch em when I work. Its eirther work to pay the few Bill's we have or stay home to do school work then become homeless.

[@dirttowater]

Exactly

[@santorashane]

I am a public high school teacher in FL. I have around 10 kids that have not shown up ONCE this school year, and another 10-20 more that I only see once or twice a week, and some students I see around once or twice a month. It truly is a problem. I have no idea where they are, and I cannot get in touch with parents. I believe my county has around 5,000 missing children.

[@twt000]

Kids are getting used to slacking/being online so it's getting harder to get kids to go even for motivated education valued parents. We may see college educated parents with academically struggling students(my worry). I'm under 3 generations of U. of Washington science grads and I may be the last.

[@nickyy_6021]

Im a junior In high school Im 16 and honestly online school really has taken me downhill as teens we all are upset that we can’t be at school we’re just at home everyday all day. My school the teachers sometimes just say ok here’s the work do it don’t do oh well and then just leave and let us have the whole period off like how is that teaching ? How is that allowing us to learn ?

[@zmrpa]

This is exactly why I've been anti lockdown since the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year. I work in a socio-economically impacted neighborhood and see how these families suffer the most.

[@Xenonmorph__]

I live in Cleveland and many of the problems facing Detroit's students are the same ones here. Another problem is that many children rely on the free/ reduced priced meals that schools provide so that has created a severe hunger crisis in Cleveland. Many churches and day programs have had to step in to do bagged lunches for the students so they don't go hungry. But many children are still hungry. And I can't imagine how much that hurts as a parent.

[@vicgamesvt9682]

I was never chronically absent till this year I probaly miss 20/60 classes each month this year and when schools closed last March I only attended one or two online classes that year.

[@ttkell3310]

This is a pandemic also. It's tough for kids, parents and teachers. Wifi messes up too. I just hope these kids have all their credits for graduation and college

[@AD-ge1bz]

My teacher gave me a 35 on my one test cuz I submitted the wrong files, I begged for a second chance or an extra assignment since it was a genuine mistake but she didn't give it to me and it's the end of my semester and I'm worried that the 35 could be the deciding mark for me to fail the course.

[@ttkell3310]

@@AD-ge1bz I hope everything goes well

[@Eastsidet03]

@@AD-ge1bz i hate when they do that it’s like that they don’t care about that people’s wifi messes up

[@whitelightning5937]

Never been absent before but when it went online I had 60+ absences and that was one of the lowest amounts in the school

[@order66ed20]

education is so important, and even with a pandemic going on I believe that educating our youth should be our first priority!!!!

[@sausages6135]

Yeah, it's just a daycare until they're old enough to work. Learning useless things like history

[@naydsoe27]

@@sausages6135 what? You learn history so you can learn from the past and make sure not to make the same mistakes

[@order66ed20]

@@sausages6135 i don't know if this is ironic or not but history is one of the most essential classes imo

[@kevinn1158]

This is critical to changing people’s lives. Hard work. Making sure kids are being guided into better lives. No judgement. Just get the job done anyway you can.

[@Augfordpdoggie]

Thats the parents' job

[@kevinn1158]

@Louie Ruiz Many of the families are single parent. In the end, you can go on and on about it's their job, but they aren't getting the job done and it's chronic. Force a change in some way and hope the next generation get a good education and don't get pregnant early etc etc...

[@johnsnow5955]

@@Augfordpdoggie Yah Sure hope that parent is not poor because if they are their job is impossible. Just work 12 hour shifts to support your family while also being at home enough to parent them.

[@Augfordpdoggie]

@@johnsnow5955 i do understand that relationships change, people cheat etc.....but people are responsible for their decisions. I believe many ppl think having a child is like having a puppy- just feed.it.and play with it. Im 47 and i never had kids cuz i knew i couldnt afford to raise them in a good way

[@johnsnow5955]

@@Augfordpdoggie Yes and that is a valid point of view but when we punish children because of their parents mistake we have a problem. Yes those parents should have known they couldn't afford a child. Is that the child's fault? should that child have less access to knowledge and information? We should stop focusing on who made the mistake and start focusing on the problem.

[@vivianagamino3831]

My lil brother has undiagnosed autism and they have really failed him the most. It makes me so sad.

[@AlvarLagerlof]

I'm dropping out of highschool. The school does not know how to treat me, a masking aspie with bpd 2 and ocd. Since not attending, I haven't been suicidal once. On top of that, I'm very good at coding (which I'm currently working with). School has thought me nothing of what I know and the coding teacher admits to me knowing more than him about what he's teaching. This system is utterly failing me.

[@bobsagget823]

I highly doubt that

[@AlvarLagerlof]

@@bobsagget823 why

[@loremachado01]

It’s crazy my sister just got done with her online school and she only in 4th grade talking about she want to drop out already that pandemic changed those kids a lot

[@georgeedward602]

Mine couldn't wait to go back and see her friends. I was a harsh teacher..lol

[@maxpelton6819]

That neighborhood of Detroit is no joke one of the saddest places on earth even just to drive through

[@maxpelton6819]

There are some great people trying to help those kids regardless if it’s enough

[@johnsnow5955]

@@maxpelton6819 Yah there will always be great people in the world but what about a world that doesn't rely on great people to do the job and instead does it ourselves. Our education system is a joke.

[@Eastsidet03]

I’m not going to lie I missed a good chunk of the school year but the people didn’t try to reach out to me until March these people don’t care about kids education all they care about is getting paid because at the end of the day they still get paid even if 10% of the class shows this is why the education system in Detroit scratch that the whole country is messed up it’s just worse in Detroit sadly

[@Micelii]

Florida is crazy, my friend just stopped going and nothing happened

[@trer04]

Our current concept of school hasn't been around for even a century and we're witnessing it go the way of the dinosaurs.

[@marshallmcluhan33]

Just put some educational stuff on Tiktok and you can win gift cards for watching. Dismantle all school boards

[@area51803]

I missed probably two days a month when I was in high-school. Completely cut it out when I got to uni. Can miss class in post secondary. High school sucks for so many different reasons. I don't blame these kids at all

[@showyn99]

18 days a year?! those are some rookie numbers 😬

[@Ok-up8dv]

Fr 2 days a month you can only miss? I be missing like 6 or 8 a month

[@capncake8837]

That seemed like a surprisingly low number to me.

[@showmercytoothers4059]

Reward those that go to school

[@iloveyouamberappel]

Rev.Simmons is doing a great job and he is right, lack of support and a strong family is a huge part. Society really needs to get back tp pushing strong family values and having dads stay in the home.

[@Thomas-lk5cu]

In my country, our kids have been at a nationwide lockdown since December 2020. Not only have they lost their day-to-day life in school, but all activities outside school have been ceased as well. What's happening right now all over the world should be illegal, and even the teachers are starting to become depressed because they can't teach and interact with their students through a camera.

[@aldossnow3703]

Reverend Simmons is a blessing, actually making a difference.

[@602west2]

Sheesh I Wish This Man Was There To Help Me When I Went Into High School ,Good Man💪🏼

[@sonnytopboy4975]

Crazy when I was at school you got paper and a text book if the power went off....You light a candle.

[@johnsnow5955]

Crazy how schools like this can't even get enough funding for paper let alone candles.

[@yannidelvalle9272]

Missing 2 or more days in a month is chronically absent?🤣🤣🤣🤣 then I was fucking addicted.

[@FinlayHamm]

When they absent but the school come to pick you up

[@baore2422]

Online college sucks. I literally have learned nothing over the past year, and feel so behind going back into face to face class.

[@MLGASSASSIN423]

Schooling is the problem, how do adults who are depressed not see, we could learn so much more advanced. Schools should be a place where kids are safe and want to go to hang with friends and learn the stuff to achieve their dreams and it’s only becoming nothing

[@Beelzebubby91]

My best advice I can give to any kids rn doing school online is that YOU have to be the one to find that motivation. You don’t need to be smart, you don’t need to be a genius at math, but you need to put in that work and push through it and use the internet for other sources of learning besides your school. My school sucked ass at teaching so I had to use KZbin and khan academy to help me with math and science and thank god for that.

[@kitterglitter7777]

I think the fact that multiple laptops aren't affordable especially in multi children homes. Schools should be providing them with internet access to all students. If they have their own great but if not the school provides all tools. Thats a big problem that leads to kids not attending class simply because their parents can't afford to provide the right school supplies like the expensive laptop, programs, calculators.

[@Kimberly-wt1nu]

1:19 65% of students are chronically absent. This statistic doesn’t even count all the students that have completely dropped out.

[@elitespeeds6278]

I don’t mean to Brag- but I’ve lived in a low income household my entire life and consistently missed 25+ days every single year from Kindergarten-Senior Year. I now attend one of the most prestigious universities in Massachusetts. My point is, we need to make school more accessible and more applicable to our daily lives to motivate us to continue attending.

[@cutthechicken194]

Your parents didn't care about you missing that much school?

[@Ali-yu7qz]

@@cutthechicken194 The pace of high school classes is ridiculously slow in some parts of North America. Trust me, 25 days is nothing.

[@tw4601]

Is vice actually covering someone saying that distance learning isn't working?

[@robertoreyes-duran3192]

When i was in high school by my sophomore year i had only attended a total of 6 months. I ditched. Now i cant really hold a job its easy for me to just not go. So this is real. Im 29 now it affected my whole life.

[@MOHAMED-yd1ed]

Am a college student same like you and Am scared now🤕

[@robertoreyes-duran3192]

Stay in school.. no matter what it takes. Its not worth it not going

[@obamacare9470]

Bartend, I dropped out 2 months into freshman year of high school and I make anywhere from $900-$1.3k a week tax free..

[@robertoreyes-duran3192]

Thanks for the "TIP" haha I'm not gonna lie to you, I was a Waiter for 3 years on my first job and I can't pretend to be nice or polite to those "Self Entitled" customers that pretend they're dooky don't stink and are all snobby for no reason. I know everyone's not like that but I can't tolerate the slightest hint of anyone thinking they can get away being a jerk. Not even people that accidently or don't really notice they're being a douche. The higher their pinkys go the higher my eyebrows go. I hate it with a passion.. That's why I stay in the Kitchen 😉 they yell at me i yell at them. And we can have bad days when we have bad days without pretending to be a happy camper.. but to each their own

[@KristynRaeV]

The mom with four kids in school... all I can say is it’s really shitty that such a situation exists that she’d have to choose between her own education and her kids. This pandemic had put a much bigger lense on the immense issues we have as a country regarding education. I sincerely hope these lessons lead to better funding, and better structures to foster learning for all.

[@jonproffitt4485]

The Reverend is an angel, God bless you sir!!

[@vvolfbelorven7084]

I was a big brother to a 10-year old five years ago in Falls Church, VA. I was 30. It was hard work. It required money to at least cover the cost of gas to and fro, let alone outings to get ice cream, a haircut, laser tag, buy soccer cleats and shorts and a soccer ball, because mentorship is more than lecturing. It’s about spending time together. The easy part was talking to him, encouraging him and help him do his homework, and taking him to the library to read The Little Prince, for example. I realized that the most effective way is to have a groups of mentors for each group of 1-4 children and have a $50 monthly stipend, maybe provided by the private sector, to incentivize mentorship. A mentor is up against environmental factors that may have an overwhelming influence on the mentee. We’re asking people to give their time and attention for someone else’s betterment where something is failing, which is laudable but often underappreciated.

[@kylarburggiss5387]

What’s sad is we’ve known about the positive affects of early childhood resources aimed at impoverished communities for decades. The Abecedarian and Perry preschool projects highlighted this quite well. Other nations took on this model, but in America we just said “yea that will never work!”

[@kfallon862]

In America we’re willing to sacrifice anything so that the upper middle class and wealthy can live comfortably on the pipeline dream that on day we’ll be part of that class.

[@mariebelle3493]

It's really sad to see kids spending hours at McDonald's just to get free WiFi!!

[@ihatehandles111]

i wish all these kids the very best. my heart breaks for the us's broken school system. i wish i could support them all.

[@vamp3340]

Missing 18 whole days a year..? And thats.. Life changing? 🧐

[@AlvarLagerlof]

Was just thinking that

[@luccaseastman5316]

This is the issue with enforcement. I grew up in extreme poverty, I was homeschooled my entire life, had terrible dial-up internet and no set classes. School wasn’t enforced. What I learned was accountability. I have 3 college degrees, and while my family who raised me is still in poverty I changed the outcome of my life. If the pandemic has one lesson, it is be accountable, algebra isn’t likely going to help as much as being respectful and accountable for your actions

[@tallywhacker5137]

Exactly 👍🏻

[@braysontay1085]

Nice video!! Was quite engaging right from the start to the very end, indeed it's a good time to invest in digital currency

[@jamesmuller2391]

rich stay rich by spending like the poor and investing without stopping then the poor stay poor by spending like the rich yet not investing like the rich.

[@steveandersonthomas7441]

People will be kicking themselves in few weeks if they miss the opportunity to buy and invest in Bitcoin as it's retracing....BE WISE.

[@Kelly-nz5iq]

Stocks are crashing bitcoin, investment right now will be at every wise individual's list. In two months you'll be ecstatic with the decision you made today.

[@emilyamber6266]

@@Kelly-nz5iq Stocks, silver, Gold's are good but Crypto is the New Gold and future..!

[@jenniferclarkchristian5280]

@@emilyamber6266 Bitcoin is the future, Investing in it now will be the wisest thing to do especially with the current rise.

[@worldview2888]

PLEASE BRING THIS SERIES BACK - LAST CHANCE HIGH.

[@mybar1226]

Instead of sharing my opinion on a youtube comment section maybe I should go call the local school district and see if there's anything I can do to make a change.

[@jpsilvashy]

The reverend is amazing. What a great guy. Hoping the community pulls through. Major love for Detroit.

[@olenkap9585]

how is 18 days A YEAR considered a lot? hat's getting sick 3 times during a whole year. Kids get sick often

[@nicklamping1221]

Weird that they have shots of Grosse Pointe South in this. Those are not the kids that are struggling here

[@jordankopp7671]

Come on Vice, when you guys do these stories you should post a go fund me or something for the poor people in the stories so viewers can donate if they want! They obviously need a hand up! Im damn near broke right now, but id still send $5!

[@oliviabenson9966]

I wish that Canada did this. I had a lot of mental health problems and barely attended at all. No one checked up on me. At my second highschool I was kicked out for the year with no warning after missing a week. The education system here is so flawed, barely any mental health support is available. I hope it gets better in the future for others so they don’t have to go through this.

[@billybob1469.]

Vice, why is your sister site Vice Asia posting edited pictures of Tuol Sleng torture victims smiling? Why is it still up after such outcry?

[@beefwithjacob1869]

I will say school now days is def not as important as it used to be. I dropped out in the 9th grade went to a trade school and now make six figures

[@mattrick2319]

i wouldn’t go as far as to say school isn’t as important as it used to be, but, I do think if you have a good work ethic and can teach yourself you could definitely get by without school past a certain level since anything you want to learn is so accessible now.

[@anoncrazynonevilgooddecent7631]

@@mattrick2319 read my comment above

[@janevim11]

"18 days a year" flashbacks to my grade 8-11 when I was extremely depressed and constantly felt bad bc of psychosomatic issues, so I considered going to school 4 days a week a triumphant win I would've completely flunked american schools, huh. but at the same time, if any of the teachers reached out to me, I could've felt much better much sooner. what a world we live in.

[@Rastrio01]

Its just different, i actually like from home learning. I have straight A's right now. No distractions, everything is easily accesible and i can replay zoom recordings if i missed something or didnt catch something. If i cant figure something out i email my prof. It does take a lot of self discipline tho, you have to want the education.

[@Delirex1]

How you get self discipline

[@Rastrio01]

Right now im about to finish my associates in Bus. Man. And right after that im starting my bachelors in the same, then after that hopefully my masters.

[@Rastrio01]

@delrex thats a great question, to put it simply its difficult but ive had a pretty crazy upbringing where I got to see first hand the alternative of not having an education will get you. You have to decide if you want to accept thats what society has in store for you, or have a want/need to be free. I grew up not wanting to be like anything around me, so i just keep trying. Im not saying that your not going to fail, in fact its going to happen a lot lol but you learn to get over it and keep getting up. Life sucks, its difficult for the lower classes you have to want to break out of there and not accept your percieved limitations. No matter where you end up you end up better than not trying. Also acknowledgment goes a long way. Lastly "id rather aim for the stars and miss than aim for the gutter and make it" (Danny Trejo) lol you dont have to be the best, just keep trying.

[@JohnAntonucciNooch]

These poor kids. Declining education opportunities, automation vacuuming up jobs, crushing economic struggle. I hope we do a 180°.

[@masenko4519]

I'm Australian and when I was a kid on holiday in LA I had a cop approach me In a shop and ask why I wasnt at school. Cops don't do that here lol

[@masenko4519]

@sneksnekitsasnek we use holiday the same way you guys use vacation

[@masenko4519]

@sneksnekitsasnek Ok

[@latanyaharris-gooden427]

This is so powerful!!!

[@DLCShark]

I’m at a school in Mississippi and we have been 100% in person learning. No hybrid no shut down. And attendance daily is 90percent+ odd that the backwards south found a way to get it done 🤷🏾‍♂️

[@habibi7188]

Good job y'all! Get that education! These idiots up north and to the west just keep getting dumber! They keep voting for it so let them deal with it

[@smee6969]

8000 deaths in the state and 500k across the US, sounds like it went well!

[@kfallon862]

@@smee6969 What’s your plan?

[@82fdny97]

Why would a school need state guidance for attendance? Check the box present or absent. Its not difficult

[@Rune__]

Poor education is a failure of government

[@michaelhawkins8474]

The key to kids attending school are meal programs whether it’s breakfast or after school

[@ehwestrich]

Chronically absent is 2 days a month! Wow. That us not much to be chronically absent.